In the city with Australia's highest median income, Shannon Wood works at The Little Pantry, a food security charity service in the Canberra suburb of Phillip.
Ms Wood says that, this year, it's been tough seeing new faces come by the pantry for the first time, relying on the service to put food on the table this Christmas.
"The biggest difference from previous years is that there are so many new faces, different people [than those] who we have seen in years past, a lot of families seeking support and citing different financial constraints," she says.
Ms Wood says she's been hearing from clients accessing The Little Pantry that their winter bills did not help in the lead-up to the holidays.
"It's the cost of living and winter bills coming in to take the big financial hit just before Christmas — that's why people come to see us, financial strain in other areas of their life that then cause food insecurity."
Ms Wood's observations are correct, according to Emma Campbell, the chief executive of the Australian Capital Territory's Council of Social Services (ACTCOSS).
Canberra services have seen a significant increase in demand over the past 12 months, Dr Campbell confirms.
"We are seeing so many Canberrans approaching our services asking for support with the basics — including food, medicine and clothing — [so much so] they will not be afforded the luxury of presents and good food on the table," she says.
"The festive season is really a time for celebration, but there are huge pressures on families to purchase gifts and make Christmas really special for their children and the people around them but we know the cost-of-living pressures are affecting everyone."
Dr Campbell says 38,000 Canberrans are living below the poverty line, with that number including 9,000 children.
She says that it's heartbreaking that Canberra — which has the country's highest median income — has tens of thousands of residents living in poverty.
"Issues of poverty and cost of living are not just related to Christmas. It's a time where those issues become stark, but we need major changes to our social security system.
"This means that, not only are people not able to afford presents, but they're also not able to cover the costs of heating and cooling, their rent and of the other basic costs of living."
Dr Campbell says ACTCOSS would like to see the government address two things in the new year: more affordable and sustainable public housing and an increase in the JobSeeker payment to $70 a day.
Vinnies see increase in demand
It seems the increase in demand for charities' financial support isn't isolated to the nation's capital.
Claire Victory — the national director of the St Vincent de Paul Society — says it has also seen an increase in demand for its services across the country.
"Across Australia, we are seeing an increase in demand for support of between 12 and 22 per cent," she says.
"What we are seeing is a lot of people who are already struggling just doing it even tougher coming into this time of year."
Ms Victory says the increase in demand is down to the "skyrocketing cost of living, as the price for everyday essentials — such as food, fuel and accommodation — has continued to increase over the course of the year."
St Vincent de Paul also is seeing a sharp increase in the number of people needing its support for the first time, and "from people who are working but finding it hard to make ends meet as the cost of living increases".
"One thing that we've seen this year — which certainly I've never experienced before — is people on quite comfortable incomes, noticing that their grocery bill has gone up significantly. So, you can only imagine how hard that is for people who are already having to stretch every dollar because they're trying to exist on very low incomes or income-support payments," Ms Victory says.
How easy it is to be the one in need
Ms Victory also believes a raise in income support payments, such as JobSeeker, would help those who are feeling the effects of the increase in the cost of living.
She also hopes people learn how easy it is to hit financial hardship this Christmas.
"So, I really hope that everyone learns from that, to see how easy it is for your household expenses to suddenly increase to the point where they become unmanageable," Ms Victory says.
"I hope that makes us more attuned to the fact that there are so many Australians for whom that has been a struggle for a long time, every day, and that we do better to make sure that they don't need to rely on charity for support.
"People in Australia shouldn't have to rely on charitable assistance to feed themselves and feed their family but, unfortunately, that is the situation we find ourselves in."
Ms Victory says she will continue to advocate for the federal government to increase the rate of income-support payments and provide more support for housing and homelessness.
"We need to make sure that we increase income-support payments so that no one in this wealthy country has to do it tough on a daily basis, let alone at Christmas.
"We want to see greater investment in affordable housing, and the increase in the Commonwealth rent assistance, all those things that just are going to make it slightly easier for people to get by and will continue to advocate for those changes at all levels of government."
The ABC has contacted the office of social services minister Amanda Rishworth for a response.
Ms Wood says while she has been impressed with the number of food donations made to the Little Pantry this year, she wants to encourage people to think about generosity right after the holiday period.
So far, 3,000 items have been donated to The Little Pantry this year, with half of those donated in December.
"We are fortunate with how generous others are around Christmas time but it's the period just after Christmas that we would love to see more donations."
Ms Wood's advice to those who are struggling financially going into the new year?
"Reach out to services, we are here to support you."
Ms Victory echoes the same sentiment for year-round support, not just the spur-of-the-moment generosity at Christmas.
"We need donations, year-round, of good-quality, non-perishable food items, of good-quality, second-hand clothing and other household items, as well as financial donations to support us in all our works throughout the year, including at Christmas."
